A Leesburg woman was arrested this week on a warrant issued for the alleged molestation of a juvenile under 12 years of age last year.
An officer with the Leesburg Police Department responded to an undisclosed Lake County residence concerning a possible sexual assault around 1:28 p.m. on Friday, July 5, according to an affidavit of probable cause out of Lake County.
Upon arrival, the officer met with the female complainant who advised the juvenile victim was molested by 58-year-old Cynthia Julia Chadwick. The complainant explained that in early Oct. 2023, Chadwick watched the victim at her residence in Lake County. She was unsure of the exact date in October but did recall Chadwich coming to her residence near the end of that month demanding to see the victim, the affidavit said.
When the complainant picked up the juvenile victim from Chadwick’s residence, the victim was not wearing underwear or a shirt. The victim was completely naked, which was not normal. Chadwick told her that the victim’s clothes were being washed because they got dirty, the affidavit said.
The complainant no longer felt comfortable with Chadwick watching the victim after that incident. Following this, the victim got sick with a virus and could not see anyone for more than a week. The complainant would not allow Chadwick to see the victim because they were ill, causing Chadwick to become upset and threaten to evict her, the affidavit said.
Near the end of October, the complainant was bathing the victim when the victim began touching an undisclosed subject. She told the victim not to do so, and the victim replied that Chadwick said it was okay for them to touch the subject and that it was okay for Chadwick to touch, as well. The complainant questioned the victim further, and the victim advised that Chadwick touched them when they played together, the affidavit said.
The complainant then took the victim to a pediatrician at UF Health Leesburg Hospital, located at 600 E. Dixie Avenue, where they discovered no signs of physical abuse to the victim, the affidavit said.
On Monday, June 17, the complainant had a Facebook Messenger conversation about Chadwick’s mail in the complainant’s mailbox. During this conversation, Chadwick sent a message wherein she apologized for sexually molesting the victim. She mentioned not seeing the victim for more than a month, the affidavit said.
Chadwick also stated, “I would like to go see (the victim) I apologize for hitting (the victim) I apologize for sexy molesting (the victim) I apologize for every little thing I did, but I guess you will never forgive me.”
The complainant did not call the police at that point because she was working and had not read the messages thoroughly. On Sunday, June 23, early in the morning after midnight, she began reading through her messages with Chadwick and discovered the messages where she admitted to molesting the victim, the affidavit said.
An LPD detective was assigned to the case on Monday, July 8. He reviewed the initial incident report for content and clarity, after which he read what he could of the message exchange between the complainant and Chadwick. There appeared to be several conversations regarding Chadwick’s mail, Chadwick seeing the kids which explicitly mentioned the victim several times, and rent money, the affidavit said.
Through coordination with the Florida Department of Children and Families, it was determined that a forensic interview with the Children’s Advocacy Center was scheduled for July 23 at 9:30 a.m. Per this interview, they did have findings of sexual abuse, the affidavit said.
Chadwick was subsequently arrested Wednesday evening by the LPD on a Lake County warrant. The New York native was charged with sex offender (lewd and lascivious molest victim less than 12 years of age offender over 18 years of age). She was transported to Lake County Jail to be held without bond.
